Description
This Buffalo Meatball Crockpot Recipe features tender, flavorful meatballs made with lean ground beef and baked to perfection before slow cooking in a sweet and spicy honey buffalo sauce. Perfect as an appetizer or main course, these meatballs offer a delicious balance of smoky, spicy, and sweet flavors with easy prep and flexible freezer-friendly options.
Ingredients
Scale
Meatballs
- 2 pounds lean ground beef
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup crushed saltine crackers (approx. 22 crackers)
- 1/3 cup dried minced onion
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Honey Buffalo Sauce
- 1/4 cup Frank’s Red Hot Original Sauce, plus more to taste
- 1/4 cup honey + 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 cup apricot preserves
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat oven: Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and line a rimmed baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup.
- Mix meatballs: In a large bowl, gently whisk eggs, then add all remaining meatball ingredients. Mix well until combined thoroughly.
- Roll and bake meatballs: Using your preferred size, roll the meat mixture into meatballs and place them evenly onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 8 minutes, or until lightly browned on the outside.
- Prepare honey buffalo sauce: In a medium bowl, combine all honey buffalo sauce ingredients and whisk until smooth. Start with 1/4 cup hot sauce and adjust later to taste.
- Layer meatballs in slow cooker: Line the bottom of your slow cooker with a layer of meatballs, drizzle with some of the honey buffalo sauce, then add remaining meatballs and pour the rest of the sauce on top.
- Cook low and slow: Cover and cook on low heat for 4 hours, stirring gently every hour to ensure even coating and cooking. Taste towards the end and add more hot sauce if desired for extra spice.
- Keep warm and serve: Once cooked through and sauce is hot, keep warm in slow cooker until ready to serve. Enjoy as an appetizer or main course.
Notes
- For effortless cleanup, use a slow cooker liner in your crockpot.
- You can substitute saltine crackers with Ritz crackers if preferred.
- Use a cookie scoop to form uniform meatballs for even cooking; approximately 70 meatballs with 1-inch scoop or 35 with 2-inch scoop.
- Browning meatballs in the oven seals in juices, prevents them from falling apart in the slow cooker, and speeds cooking.
- Double the sauce quantity if serving meatballs as a main course to have more glaze.
- Cooking times may vary depending on meatball size and crockpot brand/model; test for doneness after 2 hours.
- If preparing ahead, bake meatballs, let cool, layer in slow cooker with sauce, then refrigerate; add 30 minutes to cooking time when ready to cook.
- For freezing, meatballs can be frozen after baking or after full cooking; thaw in refrigerator and reheat gently before serving.
- When reheating frozen meatballs, options include stovetop simmer, slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours, or baking/defrosting in oven then finishing in slow cooker.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 3 meatballs
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Sugar: 7 g
- Sodium: 450 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 4 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 15 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 16 g
- Cholesterol: 60 mg
